The present invention relates, in general, to a device for the mixing of at least two products to form a mixture and for dispensing the mixture obtained. More particularly, the present invention could be embodied in the form of a device for preparing and applying a hair dye product obtained by mixing an oxidizing agent and a dye. The present invention also relates to sampling one of the two products, and a method for sampling one of the two products.
Generally, in the area of hair dyeing, the devices used for macking such mixtures include a structure having a first reservoir (generally formed by the upper part of the device) containing the oxidizing agent, and a second reservoir (generally formed by the lower part of the device) containing the dye. The first reservoir generally has an orifice equipped with a dispensing tip to allow localized application of the mixture produced. Before the mixing of the two products is performed, the two reservoirs are isolated from one another in a sealed manner by means of a shutter. The shutter may be disengaged automatically by use of an operating member. The device may be obtained by assembling two separate reservoirs made of identical or different materials. Alternatively, the two reservoirs may be molded to form a single piece.
In the area of hair dyeing, it is desirable for the user to be able to perform a strand test so as to make sure that the dye product is not harmful upon contact with her skin. Generally, this may be performed on a small area of the scalp. The conventional design of this type of device, where the dye is located in a second reservoir underneath a first reservoir containing the oxidizing agent, prevents the possibility of withdrawing such a test dose. In particular, the conventional device does not have a directly accessible opening in the second reservoir. In addition, if the dye is located in a reservoir capable of being accessed directly via the dispensing tip, a frangible member (e.g., a break away tab) on the dispensing tip sometimes needs to be removed in order to remove the dye product alone. Hence, often times, a small bottle containing a small amount of the dye product is packaged with the dye device. This small bottle, aside from the additional space it takes up in the final packing of the device, increases the overall cost of the final packaged assembly.
Therefore, one aspect of the invention relates to a mixing device that makes it possible to solve all or some of the problems discussed hereinabove with reference to the conventional devices.
Another aspect of the invention relates to a mixing device with two superposed compartments that allows a sample to be withdrawn.
Another aspect of the invention relates to a device that allows such a sample to be withdrawn, and which is simple and economical to produce.
Still other aspects of the invention will become apparent in the detailed description which follows. It should be understood that the invention could still be practiced without having one or more of the aspects or features described herein.
According to an aspect of the present invention, a device is provided for mixing at least two products to form a mixture. The device may include a first compartment configured to contain a first product, a second compartment configured to contain a second product, and a sealing arrangement isolating the first compartment from the second compartment when the device is in a storage position. The first compartment may include a dispensing orifice capable of dispensing a mixture of the first product and the second product. The sealing arrangement may be actuatable to place the first compartment and the second compartment in flow communication with one another and thereby enable mixing of the first product and the second product to form the mixture. The second compartment may include a sampling orifice to enable the withdrawal of a sample of the second product from the second compartment prior to the mixing of the first product and the second product. The device may be used to provide extemporaneous mixing of the at least two products.
The sampling orifice for withdrawing the sample may be an orifice distinct from a second orifice in the second compartment. The second orifice may form part of the sealing arrangement which allows the two products to be placed in contact with each other (i.e., an orifice through which the mixing of the products can occur). The second orifice of the second compartment may be generally inaccessible for withdrawal of a sample because of the irreversible mounting of the first compartment with respect to the second compartment. The second orifice may also be inaccessible because the first compartment and second compartment may have been produced as a single piece.
The sampling orifice for withdrawing the sample may be arranged so that the sampling orifice is above the free surface of the product contained in the second compartment. The relative positioning of the sampling orifice can be arranged for various positions of the device, for example, a head-down or a head-up position.
In another aspect, the device may further include a removable closure configured to close the sampling orifice. There are many different types of closures that could be used; for example, the removable closure may be a screw cap.
In yet another aspect, the device may further include at least one passage through which at least one of the first product and the second product passes to enable the mixing of the products. In this aspect, the sampling orifice may be separate from the passage.
In another aspect, the second compartment may be located below the first compartment.
In another aspect, the first and second compartments may be coupled to one another, and the device may be configured such that the sample of the second product may be withdrawn via the sampling orifice while the first compartment and second compartment are coupled to one another.
In still another aspect, the device has a longitudinal axis, and the sampling orifice is along a second axis separate from the longitudinal axis. For example, the second axis may be substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis. Alternatively, the second axis may define an oblique angle with respect to the longitudinal axis, for example, about a 45xc2x0 angle. The sampling orifice for withdrawing the sample may also be formed along the axis or off the axis of the device, in the bottom of the second compartment. The sample may then be removed when the device has been inverted to a head-down position.
In a further aspect, the device may be configured to permit assembly of the first compartment and the second compartment to one another while substantially preventing disassembly of the first and second compartments. For example, the first compartment and the second compartment may be assembled by screw-fastening or snap-fastening. With such an arrangement, the device may be irreversibly assembled.
In yet another aspect, each of the first compartment and the second compartment may be formed of a single piece of material. For example, the first compartment and the second compartment may be formed of a thermoplastic material. Alternatively, at least one of the first compartment and the second compartment may be formed of glass. The other of the first compartment and the second compartment may be formed of thermoplastic material.
In still another aspect, the first compartment and the second compartment may be formed together as a single piece.
In another aspect, the device may have a longitudinal axis, and the first compartment and the second compartment may be aligned along the longitudinal axis.
In a further aspect, the device may include an adapter configured to be in flow communication with the dispensing orifice to dispense the mixture.
In yet another aspect, the device may include an applicator member configured to pass through the sampling orifice to withdraw the sample.
In another aspect, the device may include an applicator member provided on the closure. Additionally, the device may include the second product contained in the second compartment, and the applicator member may be at least partially immersed in the second product when the closure closes the sampling orifice. The applicator member may be chosen from a spatula, a brush, and a block of porous material. The brush may have either axial or non-axial bristles. The block of porous material may be formed of an elastically compressible material.
In another aspect, the present invention may include the first product, for example, an oxidizing agent, contained in the first compartment and the second product, for example, a dye, contained in the second compartment. The mixture may comprise a hair composition, for example, a dye composition. Alternatively, at least one of the first product and the second product may be a liquid.
By actuating the sealing arrangement, the first compartment and the second compartment may be automatically placed in communication with one another. There are numerous types of sealing arrangements that could be used on the device. An actuation of the sealing arrangement (e.g., a force and/or movement applied to the sealing arrangement) may enable the flow communication of the compartments. The actuation may cause tearing of a membrane associated with the sealing arrangement (e.g., by means of a trocar), expelling of a removable shutter associated with the sealing arrangement, and/or movement of a shutter between a first position wherein the compartments are sealed from one another and a second position wherein flow communication between the compartments is provided, for example. The sealing arrangement could be any known sealing arrangement.
In one aspect, the sealing arrangement may include a shutter. The shutter may be configured to be movable to enable the flow communication of the first compartment and the second compartment.
The actuation may be applied by means of an operating member distinct from the first compartment and the second compartment, or by an operating member formed on the first compartment or the second compartment.
An aspect of the present invention is directed to a method of sampling a product prior to mixture of the product with at least one other product. The method may include providing a device according to the present invention, wherein the device is in the storage position. The method also includes withdrawing from the second compartment a sample of the second product via the sampling orifice.
In another aspect, the withdrawing may include removing the sample of the second product from the second compartment with an applicator member, and applying the sample of the second product to a test surface with the applicator member.
In another aspect, the method may include applying the sample of second product to a test surface, wherein the test surface may be at least one of skin and hair.
In yet another aspect, at least one of the first product, the second product, and the mixture of the first and second products may be a cosmetic product. In a further aspect, the first product may include an oxidizing agent, the second product may include a dye, and the mixture may be a hair dye composition.
The present invention may be directed to a method of sampling a product and mixing the product with another product to form a mixture. The method may include sampling the second product according to the method described above, actuating the sealing arrangement to place the first compartment and the second compartment in flow communication, mixing the first product and the second product to form the mixture, and dispensing the mixture through the dispensing orifice.
In a further aspect, the mixture may be a hair composition, for example, the hair composition may be a dye composition, and the second product may be a dye.
In another variation, the present invention may also be directed to a device for mixing at least two products to form a mixture, wherein the sampling orifice may be formed on either the first compartment or the second compartment. The sampling orifice may enable withdrawal of either a sample of the first product from the first compartment or a sample of the second product from the second compartment, prior to the mixing of the first product and the second product.
In another aspect, the sampling orifice may be provided on the first compartment. In addition, the first and second compartments may be coupled to one another, and the device may be configured such that the sample of the first product is capable of being withdrawn from the first compartment via the sampling orifice while the first compartment and the second compartment are coupled to one another.
In another variation, the present invention may also be directed to a method of sampling a product prior to mixture of the product with at least one other product, where the method includes providing a device according to the variation described above. The device may be in the storage position. The method also includes withdrawing a sample of one of the first product and the second product via the sampling orifice.
In another aspect, the withdrawing includes withdrawing the sample of the first product.
In another variation, the present invention may also be directed to a method of sampling a product and mixing the product with another product to form a mixture, where the method includes sampling one of the first product and the second product according to the method described above. The method may also include actuating the sealing arrangement to place the first compartment and second compartment in flow communication, mixing the first product and the second product to form the mixture, and dispensing the mixture through the dispensing orifice.
Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The aspects of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.